Fear of a Black President

I agree with that, soz.

Cyclo--

You made my point much clearer...ha. Contemporary American voters--regardless of color--have the same needs and desires. Previously, blacks had more needs due to lack of rights--and then, lack of their legal rights being enforced. So, I'm foreseeing a time when there are several black candidates with varying views--and a more politically diverse pool of black voters, who feel free to choose the platform that appeals to them most closely, regardless of party or color of the candidate. .... Need to work on brevity...

I'll tell you this much, it will be a long, long time before any group of AA's votes Republican in significant numbers. They are under no illusions as to which group of Americans are more representative of their people, and you need look no farther then representation in Congress to see that.

Cycloptichorn

as AA's get richer .... more and more will vote republican..... just like any other racial group.

Sure. It will be a long, long time before AA's as a group get much richer. There are significant structural problems with the community that have not really been addressed here in America, as well as plenty of work left to be done in the area of racial relations as a whole.

Cycloptichorn

I'm with Bear. The whole "their people" thing smacks of the DNA thing. People vote their pocket, their kid's education, not their "people"...

I do acknowledge we're in a transition---it will spread out.

I am a black woman and I dont subscribe to the whole " my people " idea either.

Tis why black folk dont tend to like me much
Not that it matters. But that 'my people' thought process is actually very strong..oddly enough

It really has very little to do with AA's, specifically; examine the plight of minorities anywhere in the world and you'll see exactly the same thing.

Cycloptichorn

Shewolf--
You strike me as very individualistic. (I admire it!!) I've seen you take lumps for not coalescing around the "my people"-type mindset--and I always wanted to tell you how much I thought of you.

But, in some corners, admiration from Lash on racial issues can be more harmful than anything....

Anyhoo, you rock, sweetheart!

Obama makes me very afraid but not because he is black.

(climbs onto the bandwagon)

I fully agree with Obama on this point and am truly hopeful that he will deliver on it.

However, I believe that - on both sides - the defensiveness and finger pointing depend entirely on just which "racial issue" is under discussion. We all welcome benefits and privilege, but find responsibility and accountability a bit less pleasant. Both sides need to let go of some myths and deal with the realities of our equality as individuals, both under the law, and in every other aspect of life.

Why will it be much longer before blacks become richer as a group?

Are there significant structural problems that have not been addressed? Or, have we just bought into that? Is it real, or who is promoting that concept?

Flipping through the channels last night I landed on a Parks and Rec Awards Ceremony on the local government channel. They were awarding a high school senior for her service. The emcee listed off that the recipient is a 4.0 student, girl scout, President of her school Deca chapter, and served the Parks and Rec by volunteering her time to provide child care at one of the park centers and assist with a summer camp. When asked how she does all that, the emcee said she answered "Well, I don't procrastinate." The audience laughed. The camera panned to the recipient... a black girl of no outwardly apparent affluence.

I thought "Dang, you are going places. Good for you!" That was quickly followed by "Her parents must be so proud." Then I changed the channel. There are no structural problems in the community holding HER back, obviously.

Over the past year I have heard on NPR and read elsewhere a couple of times, that there is a growing resentment of blacks towards latino / hispanics. I haven't understood why. The reporters of this news usually ascribe it to blacks feeling that latino's are taking their jobs and competing with them for housing. Really?

I don't want to gloss over. I'd really like an honest open discussion of this race issue without anyone having to feel they are going to be attacked for their views. I think that's what it is going to take as a country. Here, amongst friends, we should be able to do that as a start to the dialogue.

I.love.you.


I will write out my opinion. Granted , it will take a while.


i will start now.

Actually, that doesn't logically follow. There ARE structural problems in the AA community which hold them back. I will expound on this a little later today, but suffice it to say that generational poverty combined with some latent racism brings about a situation in which education is not seen as a high priority amongst many in the community.

It's more fair to say that the structural problems were unable to hold back this individual, then to take the experiences of one and use it to say that there are no problems. That approach is really reminiscent to me of the argument made by Conservatives, that b/c some minorities become successful, those minority groups they belong to have no disadvantages worth mentioning.

Cycloptichorn

I wrote this in notepad first so forgive the odd sentence breaks. Im not going to take time to change those. This will be too long to reasonably do that.

I dont know where to start on this race issue. I will start by saying that I am tired of watching people play the victim simply because of the color of skin they were born in
as if ( and I have used this line before ) as if it were an expensive tattoo. It seems that it is common place for a black person to claim some kind of
lee-way simply because they are black. And that it is EXPECTED of black people to do so.
That they are expected to always ask for hand outs and not give a damn about where those hand outs are from. That they are EXPECTED to be on welfare. Expected to have too many kids. Expected to be loud and rude. Expected to be under educated and under valued .

It seems as if society wants to do nothing more then give black people money, education, housing, food, clothing..e tc.. and not take the time to simply apologize for
continuing the very racism black people think they suffer from.


BUt................No one is making you, black people, TAKE these damn hand outs.

NO on is making you, black people, stay at the bottom of the ladder

No one is capping you , black people, and stopping you from going where you want to go.

I am at the point of thinking that this racism , this.. perceived victimization is self imposed. I can see WHY people feel this way. Im no idiot. As a black woman I can walk into any welfare office, check that little box that says BLACK and get something for it. I know this. So do most other people. But I dont do it because I dont need it. And I wish most others would realize that they DONT NEED IT either. But that is a big balloon to pop and not what I want to address.



Im black. I can do what ever I want. And I am. No one is stopping me and when I really look around at the world I am choosing to compete in (photography) I do see a lot of
white people. And you know what? There is a part of me that is rejoicing in this.
A part of me that truly thinks I can run full steam ahead because of my skin color.
It is as if I am going to walk into some forbidden room.I will be the exotic one everyone will ohhhh and ahhhh over and they will allow me through with no obstacles. At the end of this room is a bowl of gold that everyone who is anyone can have some. And because they are ohhing and ahhhing, I can have what I want. And they will GIVE IT TO ME because I am the only one they have seen do this..


I mean.. black people are not supposed to be head strong. They are not supposed to be smart. And they are not supposed to behave as any other person in society does.

As I said before, people see skin color and automatically expect something , even if it is wrong.

So I want to own that expectation and ride out my dreams on it like a surfboard. And I can.

I can because many black people seem to think that society will do nothing but shun them so they stay back. They think that everyone is out to get them and the only people
who understand them are ' their people' so they stay with them. They stay in these small circles, these small societies, and remain small people.
Yet, myself, Obama, Colin Powell.. and MANY other BLACK people are living proof that the victim mindset does not apply. That when you get off your ass, you can do anything no matter your skin color.

yes, there are organizations that WILL NOT HIRE people because they are black.
There are also places that will discriminate against a woman, republican, liberal, gun owner, NON gun owner, prius driver, mother , father... so on.... They are out there. SO . WHAT. They are few and far between and what laws were made for.
All too often I hear of people wanting to cite those kinds of places as reasons to not achieve anything. And I just want to shake my head.

To me that is like saying you wont jump into a haystack from a burning building for fear of one needle. I dont truly understand that.

I also dont understand the self serving, lets block everyone else out , attitude of " mypeople"
My brotha / my sistah....

yes. Black people originated from Africa.
Just like native americans came from Asia. ( Across the bering straight.. no.. Im not giving a history lesson )

Just because I am of the same skin color, does not mean you need to attempt to keep me down by including me into this oddly defeating club of yours by calling me a sistah.
Im not related to you...... I am not part of you........ I am an individual and I do not see things as you do.
Thanks to the real low life of society, those terms have become almost morse code for " you are like me and a victim of them. come be my friend"

I hate it.

I would LOVE to feel real kindship with people that share my skin color. I would. But I cant. They dont like me........and.. to a certain extent.. I dont like them.

What I think.. is that racism is larger between people of the same color then anything else..


****. I could go on forever.
This will really piss people off.
Know now that I dont care.
I dont MEAN to make anyone angry.. but an open invite to discuss how I feel about this was given. I responded.

What shewolf said goes for everyone, not just blacks. Or whites. Or Asians. Or any other skin color or nationality.

A huge problem in this country is the "owe me" mentality. Everyone seems to think they are owed something. That someone, somewhere wronged me so now you owe me something. Like a job I don't deserve, simply because I am a woman and you need to fill your quota.

And when you go through your life thinking that, and don't get it, you get jaded. And that brings me to the other problem in this country. The "it's not my fault" mentality. God forbid people take responsibilty for themselves and their life.

Bravo wolf woman, for saying something that needed to be said.

(From another thread):

shewolf, you said this:

I mean.. black people are not supposed to be head strong. They are not supposed to be smart. And they are not supposed to behave as any other person in society does.


Is that really true? And if so, says who?

what?
You calling me on saying I dont like most black people?
Because I dont. And it isnt racist. Im not hating people for their skin color...I just dont like the mindset they have.

You do not find this with white people.
You do not find this with asians, hispanics, indians.. and I am not going to be PC about it and pretend it isnt there or that it is a sore point .

It WAS a shock to know that I can be friends with black women and not have that behavior be expected of -me-. That isnt judging.. that is being 100% honest. That is how I felt.

it. was. a shock. And it was a lesson.

But that does not take away from my idea that too many think they are victims of things that dont really exist.

It is entirely possible however, that this behavior I see is only in the area i live. And that in the big scheme of things, it is NOT common.
My experience has been that most feel they are victims of something. I dont know what.

As everyone else does , I am drawing my opinions from my own experiences, not facts.

I just skimmed over the first page of this thread, but here's my take on this subject.

Politics is so much like religion; once the brain is washed, it's not only difficult, but almost impossible to change.

The major topic around here in California is the legal right for gays and lesbians to have a "marriage."

Talk about a "hot button" topic, this is one of them that runs the gamut from "marriage is reserved for heterosexuals only" to "marriage is only between and man and a woman."

It's just a word for crying out loud! But try to impose the liberal interpretation of "marriage," and we'll have a war on your hands.

They say, "marriage is sacred," and meant to protect the "family unit." Never mind that over fifty percent of heterosexual marriages end up in divorce, or that many engage in extra-curriculars. Don't even talk about the issue of "equal rights under the laws" or the Constitution and Bill of Rights.

The word must be protected at all cost.

The lesson here is that those who believe we don't want a black person as our president will not change their stripes - well, almost all - or at least the majority.

The human brain is a mysterious object; it doesn't matter whether the individual is black, yellow, white or red; Jew, Muslim, Christian, Buddhist or atheist; or lives in the US, UK, Europe, Asia, Africa any of the four continents.

There are some things that will never change; bigotry, superstition, misinformation, ignorance and discrimination.

It's a tough world out there!